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Falcons seek funds boost

The Falcons are seeking more sponsorship funds from the City of Joondalup. Picture: Dan White

West Perth Football Club chief executive David Crute said at the council briefing last Tuesday the Joondalup-based club was asking for $50,000 to help fund its community-based programs, but a council document said $40,000 was considered more appropriate.

Mr Crute said the club had contributed $200,000 a year to its community programs and it was about to double that through its memorandum of understanding with the West Coast Eagles.

He said the club was looking to implement a multicultural program as of next year as well a new indigenous program.

‘Currently we do not have one indigenous player that plays for the West Perth Football Club and, frankly, that’s embarrassing so that is something we aim to rectify through the employment of Andrew Krakouer,’ he said.

The club is also looking to expand its Falcons Footy Fundamentals program for children aged 18 months to five years to ‘nearly every school, childcare centre and community facility throughout the cities of Joondalup and Wanneroo’.

‘As a pilot program, we started off with 30 kids at Arena Joondalup and we’re sitting at just over 300 now and that’s in the space of only three to four months,’ Mr Crute said.

‘This is the first time in Australia that an AFL entity has engaged in this kind of program.’

‘We see this as a crucial program to fighting obesity.’

He said in return for its sponsorship, the City would receive a range of benefits including nationwide exposure from the telecast of the NAB Cup derby at Arena Joondalup and West Perth’s participation in the Foxtel Cup.

Councillors Russ Fishwick and Kerry Hollywood asked if the City of Wanneroo also sponsored West Perth and Mr Crute said no.

Cr Hollywood also asked if the City’s sponsorship went towards the Butler Falcons (a program set up for young Sudanese males and females in the Clarkson and Banksia Grove areas).

Mr Crute said part of it would but the proposal did not indicate how much or what percentage of the City’s funding would go to particular programs.

He said the relationship between West Perth and the City was ‘second to none’.

‘This is by far the biggest council-based sporting sponsorship in Perth. No other WAFL club has anywhere near the relationship that we have with the City of Joondalup ” this is the benchmark,’ he said.

The City has also committed a maximum of $4 million for the proposed upgrade of Arena Joondalup, which will include new club rooms and facilities for West Perth.